No dental insurance? Here are a few options to consider

In my last article I discussed what to look for when choosing an insurance plan, but what if your employer doesn't offer insurance and you can't afford an individual or family plan? What other options do you have besides pay-as-you-go?

Discount Plans:

Discount plans are not insurance. You pay for any dental care that you have done but get a discounted rate. There are two main ways this happens.

o In Office Plans or Offers: Your dental office may create categories that offer a discount to those who qualify. Some examples are: A Pre-Pay Cash Discount (a per cent off if you pay cash in full before the treatment is performed), A Senior Citizen Discount (a per cent off if you're over 65 and have no dental insurance) or a Preventive Maintenance Program (you pay a fee to enroll that covers your two 6 month cleanings and exams and one set of x-rays for the year. It also provides access to discounts on other treatments when you pay in full on the day it's performed. Think of it kind of like a yearly membership fee.)

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o Commercially Offered Discount Plans: With these plans, you pay a fee to a company to enroll in their Discount Plan. When you see a dentist who participates with that plan, your fees are based on the fee schedule for that plan. For example, if you need an emergency dental exam and the usual fee is $75.00 but the Fee Schedule for your Discount Plan says $50.00 then you would pay $50.00 and "save" $25.00. Some companies that offer Commercial Discount Plans are www.brighter.com, www.dentalplans.com, and www.humanaonedental.com (There are others as well.) As with dental insurance, if you have a specific dentist that you'd like to see, it's best to check with her or him to make sure she or he participates with the plan you're considering.

No Interest Financing Plans:

These plans are similar to the "same as cash" plans seen in other businesses. Once you're approved, you have the dental work done. The finance plan pays your dentist, and you make monthly payments to the finance plan. As long as you pay off the balance on or before the due date, you have no interest. CareCredit and American General are two of many companies that offer this option. Your dental office should have applications available for the plans with which they participate.

Barter:

If you have a skill or service to offer, you could ask your dentist if he or she is willing to trade services of equal (or close) value or give you a discount if the values are not so similar. Many times this works best if you already have a connection to the dentist, whether by being his or her patient already, knowing him or her through a community group, or being referred by someone who is a patient and knows the dentist has a need for a service you offer.

Ohio's Dental Options

Program:

This program is a joint attempt between organized dentistry (the Ohio Dental Association) and the Ohio Department of Health to connect qualifying uninsured Ohioans with participating Dentists. The Program administrators take the application to see if you qualify. There is still a cost when you have dental care, but it is greatly reduced. More information on this program is available at http://oda.org/community-involvement/dental-options/ This program is not equipped to treat dental emergencies and the wait to be paired with a dentist can be long.

Clinics or Schools

Dental schools and dental hygiene training programs often offer dental care at reduced rates. The trade off is that the filling that might take your neighborhood dentist an hour or less to do may take three hours or more at the clinic or school. This is because the students are still learning their trade and work under the direction of the instructors - who must check the treatment at various points. Some cutting edge procedures that are not yet standard of care or that are elective may not be available. In the case of dental hygiene programs, if you need fillings or any treatment other than cleanings and x-rays, you will need to find or be referred to a local dentist. Clinics often have an application process to see if you qualify for programs that could aid you in affording dental care. If you do not qualify for those, they will often provide a sliding fee scale based on your application.

The wait for an available appointment or chair may be long, both because of the need and because many clinics overbook to try to minimize the impact of those who don't show up for their appointments. In other words, expect to trade your time for the reduction in cost.

If you would like to discuss any of these alternatives to dental insurance, please call me at 440-960-1940 or contact me through my website at www.drjrobb.com